Bachelor's · Stanford, California

Is Computer Science at Stanford University worth it?

High confidence High confidence: 100+ graduates behind the earnings figures.

The verdict · all families, in-state, half paid with loans

Pays back fast: graduates typically recover the cost in about 0.6 years.

Earnings 1 year after graduating: $169,457; Treasury AY2020-21, AY2021-22 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Earnings 4 years after graduating: $230,836; Treasury AY2017-2018, AY2018-2019 pooled earnings cohort measured in CY2022, CY2023, inflation adjusted to 2024 dollars
Typical federal debt at graduation: $12,000; NSLDS pooled AY2022-23, AY2023-24 cohort
Net cost to graduate, all families: $54k (likely $52k – $73k); AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26
Earnings bump, year 4: $191k a year vs high-school graduates aged 25–34 in CA; 2023 ACS 5-year pooled, adjusted to 2024 dollars
Payback: 0.6 years (likely 0.5–0.7); Bump vs net cost plus loan interest
10-year net return: $1.61M (likely $1.42M – $1.83M); Today's dollars
20-year net return: $3.85M (likely $3.32M – $4.40M); Today's dollars
Odds of finishing (school-wide): 92%; Fall 2019 or AcadYr 2019-20 cohort (differs by institutional calendar), reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26